A group of health check-up centre operators, who conduct pre-departure medical tests of migrant workers, took to the streets on Thursday, demanding withdrawal of the Malaysian government’s decision to introduce the Biome-tric Medical Test system.

Organised under Nepal Foreign Employment Medical Association (NeFEMA), they said the system will needlessly increase the health check-up cost by Rs 1,500. As of now, a prospective migrant worker pays around Rs 3,000 for a medical check-up as required by Malaysian employers.

“The new system makes it mandatory for clinics in Nepal to have expensive software, which costs $8,000. This is simply unaffordable for both the clinics and the service seekers,” said NeFEMA Chairman Khadka Bahadur Shrestha. “What is more objectionable is the way this system has been imposed. There has not been any consultation with the government or our association.”

The system will issue a card, which includes the cardholder’s photo, date of birth, finger print, address, family background, details of empl-oyer, and recruiting agency. 

A group of 200 NeFEMA members staged a protest outside the Malaysian embassy and submitted a memorandum to Fadli Adilah, Charge d’ Affaires of the Malaysian Embassy in Kathmandu.

Shrestha said NeFEMA asked the Malaysian authority to introduce the system through proper government channel. He accused the government and the Malaysian authority of conspiring to enforce syndicate in the medical sector. NeFEMA has thre-atened to continue its protest if the demand goes unheard.

“Since the decision to install the software was taken citing security concerns of the Malaysian government instead of any genuine health concern, they (the Malaysian authorities) should bear the financial burden,” he said. 

Shrestha argued the two governments should first sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to install the software. “He (the Malaysian ambassador) has taken our demand seriously. He said his government will hold talks with the Nepal government to amicably solve the issue,” Shrestha said. 

The Nepali embassy in Malaysia confirmed the Malaysian government introduced the biometric test system from January 2. The embassy said the system will be made compulsory from June.

Nepal’s Ambassador to Malaysia Niranjan Man Singh Basnyat said the system will be implemented for 14 labour supplying countries. Quoting a Malaysian official, Basnyat said the Malaysian government has spent $170 million to hire a Malaysian IT firm Bestinet Sdn Bhd to expand the software. He said medical centres in Nepal have to pay $8,000 to install the software.

“The additional cost due to the new software should be included in the existing fee the workers pay to manpower companies to come to Malaysia. It is not as claimed as by the manpower agencies,” said Basnyat. 

Meanwhile, the Nepali embassy in Malaysia said it has written to the Malaysian government, urging the latter to “reconsider” the five-fold increase in visa processing fee. Migrant workers going to Malaysia currently pay Rs 3,900 from Rs 700 earlier, after the Malaysian government outsourced visa processing to a private firm named VLN Malaysia. 

“The embassy has sent a letter to Malaysia’s foreign ministry, requesting it to rethink on the recent hike in visa processing fee. We are yet to hear anything from the Malaysian government,” said Basnyat. The letter was sent two weeks ago. 

Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies (NAFEA) said they would not accept additional costs on any pretext. In a statement, NAFEA has accused the Malaysian government of “imposing syndicate” in every aspect of foreign employment through murky dealings.

NAFEA Chairman Bal Bahadur Tamang recently told the Post that his office is only against the “shadowy dealings and increase in visa processing fee”, not the software itself.

“The software could be beneficial for workers, but the dealings should be made transparent and should not bring additional burden to workers. Moreover, there should be a guarantee that this system will not promote syndicate of a few people by displacing many others,” he said.